Living Off Blood
by Screamarie
Summary: SLASH! Highschool fic, set in America. After Hiei's mother dies he and his sister are sent to live with their Aunt Atsuko and cousin Yusuke. There he meets a young mysterious redhead hearthrob.
1. Prologue, Ghost Pale

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.   
**Summary:** High school fic, set in America to avoid complications. After his mother dies Hiei and his sister Yukina go to live with their aunt Atsuko and cousin Yusuke. There he goes to school with his cousin and meets a young mysterious red-head who seems to be the school's heart-throb.   
**Pairings:** Kurama x Hiei, Yusuke x Keiko, Kuwabara x Yukina, maybe more.  
  
**Living Off Blood...  
**  
**Prologue:  
Ghost Pale**  
  
There's a reason why there are so few ways to deal with a dead body. Why do you think that people cremate or bury their loved ones? To get rid of them. To forget that they were ever alive. They do this so that way they won't have to hurt anymore. They can forget the body in some dirt pile several miles off or put them in a pretty vase on the mantle to be overlooked and collect dust. Because no one wanted to look at them anymore.  
  
Why were dead bodies so scary to people? Because they knew that would be their fate someday and when you see a dead body...you think that could be me. That could be me in 5 years, or 5 months, or 5 weeks, or 5 days, or...tomorrow, or...today. That could be me in 5 minutes. Course the fact of the matter is that you don't know when you're going to die and that's the only reason why we keep on living. That's why we go to work or school or the grocery store. Because we don't know there will be a masked gunman that wants to rob the bank that day. To tell the truth just about everything that happens in this world is just one big coincidence. That's why dead bodies are so horrible. Because that's the only thing we're sure off. That we will all be dead bodies someday. That's why people don't want to see them.  
  
Course who can really blame them? Dead bodies are so...dead. You don't want to see them. The eyes don't shine anymore. The skin goes ghost pale and cold. We live off blood and therefore we do not want to see the bloodless. We do not want to see what we will all someday become. Yet I find it odd that some people find it so hard to admit that someone is dead. Course once you see the body any form of denial is hard. I stood there wondering why this woman's body was cold and pale and...dead.  
  
She had been so healthy and had been so good. She had gone to church every Sunday and Wednesday. She had asked to be saved and had been baptized. She was a teacher for Special Ed. students and gave all sorts of things to charity. She had never drunk, done drugs, and it surprised people to hear she had two children. She had been a happily married woman until a couple of years ago when her husband died. She had been beautiful and friendly and had never broken the law. I'd be surprised if she had ever even told a lie...so why was this woman dead?  
  
Why was Hina Retsu dead?  
  
Why was my mother dead?  
  
**END PROLOGUE**  
  
OKAY this is what you get for listening to Duvet and Wait & Bleed all day long whilst being in a morbid mood. I wrote that for a reason I don't know why. Knowing it was good (and morbid) I decided to keep and then was like FANFIC! So therefore here is a new fanfic that hopefully my Sensei will keep me from screwing up. (Knows she'll screw it up with or with out Rei-pan's help)


	2. Chapter 1, A Dream of Past Reality

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.  
  
**Living Off Blood...**  
  
**Chapter One:  
A Dream of Past Reality  
**  
_"Hiei, don't you dare leave this house!" his mother yelled at him. He stood there staring at the blue-haired woman. Hina was standing there in a turquoise business suit with fake pearls around her neck and her hands on her hips. They had been yelling at each other for the last hour. Screaming so loud that it wouldn't be surprising if the neighbors heard them.  
  
"WHY? Why should I stay when all you're going to do is yell at me some more?" He asked. Standing by the door he stared daggers at his mother. His mother had found another pack of cigarettes in his room. As soon as Hina did she started yelling and screaming about him being irresponsible and stupid. She always seemed to do that. His mother would find another flaw and they'd end up fighting.  
  
"Hiei you are so grounded. For a month and if you leave this house make it two!" She said and he scoffed.  
  
"Like I have anywhere to go!" He said rolling his eyes. Turning back to the door he walked out slamming it behind him.  
_  
"HIEI!"  
  
Hiei woke with a start and looked around. His sister was nudging him looking at him somewhat concerned. His younger sister, Yukina, was small with her blue hair and crimson eyes. He sat up and yawned. They had been in the car all day; their mother's friend, Sandra, was driving. It was fairly dark and with the streetlights passing above them, the atmosphere in the car was calm.  
  
A gentle wave of sound came from the speakers in the car. Hiei rolled his eyes. Country music. He didn't understand how anyone could listen to it. All it seemed to do was depress. Hell the blues weren't this bad. 'My wife left me, my dog died, and my house burned down' he mocked in his mind. If he ever needed the courage to commit suicide he'd remember to play Garth Brooks.  
  
"Hiei we're almost to Atsuko's." his sister said and he nodded yawning. He must have fallen asleep earlier. While sleeping he must have been dreaming of his mother. He turned back to the window and stared out at buildings they passed. Cellular One, Auto Zone, Laser Wash, McDonald's. Just another town, in just another state, in just another country.  
  
They came across a large area of land filled with houses that looked mainly the same. A sign out front said, 'Scenic View Housing.' Hiei looked around skeptically. There was nothing 'scenic' here. So why give it such a lie of a name? He shrugged mentally and let it slide. After pulling their bags from the trunk of Sandra's car they headed to one of the houses. He walked with Sandra avoiding the urge to take his sister's wrist like he used to do when they were younger. Sandra pulled out a sheet of paper with the house number on it.  
  
She could have just asked Hiei or Yukina. Yes, it had been two years since they had been there but that didn't mean anything. They weren't stupid, they could remember a simple number. The problem was that Sandra thought they were both in traumatic states of shock or something. Fact of the matter was that Yukina had been crying her eyes out for days but wasn't taking it any further than that. Hiei hadn't even blinked an eye when he had heard the news.  
  
He wondered if there aunt and cousin were the same as last time. It had been quite a while since they had seen each other seeing as Atsuko and her sister had ended up in a huge fight that had caused Hiei and Yukina to be quickly grabbed and pulled out of the house and back into the car. They had been driving all day and finally gotten there, planning to stay for a couple of nights but that didn't happen.  
  
He remembered back to the day two years ago....  
  
_ "You know sis I've been wanting to talk to you about something." Atsuko had said sitting down, cigarette in hand.  
  
"Yes, Atsuko?" His mother had said, hearing that annoyed tone in her voice he was so used to.  
  
"Well...okay I'm just going to throw it out there. I think you should lighten up on Hiei. You're always grinding him into the ground and yelling at him. It's not going to turn him into a model citizen if you keep yelling at him."  
  
"How dare you tell me how to raise my boy!" Hina yelled at her sister. Now Atsuko wasn't the type to pry into other people's business very often, especially when it came to taking care of kids. She admittedly wasn't the best mom there ever was but she did at least know that you caught more flies with honey than with vinegar.  
  
"Look Hina no need to get bug-eyed over this. It's just you've been hard on that boy since he was born." Atsuko tried to say calmly.  
  
"You raise a juvenile delinquent and you're trying to tell me how to raise my children?!" That was when Yukina had started to cry. Hiei had been 14 and his little sister 12. Hiei had run to her side and tried to get her to stop crying. There was only one person in this world that Hiei held any form of loyalty and trust in and that was Yukina. Yukina hated it when their mother yelled and unfortunately that was quite often. Course until recently she hadn't been crying so much.  
_  
It was another flash of memory as Sandra knocked on their aunt's door. Something that had happened two years ago but as Yusuke opened the door to the house you could have thought it to be yesterday. The place was slightly messy but overall a nice place. A living room with connecting kitchen and a hall leading to three rooms and a bathroom.  
  
"Hey everybody." Yusuke said. "My mom isn't here she's should be just getting off work. "  
  
"Hi," Sandra said smiling. "Well I'd stick around and chat but I need to hurry up and get home."  
  
"You sure? It's pretty late." Yusuke said but Sandra waved him off.  
  
"It's alright. I'm used to late driving. I'll see you kids later. Hiei, Yukina if you need anything just call me." Sandra said before waving and heading back to the elevator. Hiei and Yukina walked into the living room and Yusuke smiled at them both.  
  
"How's it going?" He asked. Hiei had no response but Yukina smiled slightly.  
  
"Hi Yusuke. It's...going." She said. "How are you?"  
  
Hiei took a look around the living room and kitchen. The sink was filled with dirty dishes. The countertop covered with mail, dishes, and boxes of food. A bookcase was messily covered with books, mail, knick- knacks, and...a dirty plate. A torn old couch, a coffee table in front of it, and a TV were what made the sitting area. A bean bag chair was thrown to the side of the coffee table. Fake flowers decorated the room because Atsuko and Yusuke didn't pay attention enough to water real plants.  
  
"I'm good. Well hey guys you probably want some sleep am I right?" Yusuke asked. "Well come with me and I'll show you, your rooms." Yusuke said and he walked into the hall. Opening one door he flicked on the light. "Here's the bathroom in case of any late night bladder problems. And across from that is my mom's room." Walking further down the hall and opening another door, "This is my room. Hiei you'll be sharing it with me."  
  
Hiei grimaced. Yusuke was loud, messy, and annoying. He didn't really feel like living in Yusuke's filth...course he probably won't be around enough to really care. He hardly even saw his own room because he was always trying to get away from their mother. He figured that was just going to have to be the case here as well.  
  
"And across from it is the former guest room. It is now Yukina's bedroom." Yusuke said opening that door as well. Yawning he said, "If you guys want something to eat the kitchen is open all night and help yourselves to the bathtub as well. I'm going to get some shut eye." He said and walked into his bedroom. Falling down on one of the beds he curled up and promptly began snoring.  
  
Yukina looked to her older brother as if seeking directions.  
  
"You hungry or anything?" He asked and she shook her head. "Then try and get some sleep." He said. He knew his sister hadn't been sleeping to well lately. The heartbreak of having her mother die had been took much. Too her dismay her brother didn't seem all that bothered by it and that only made things worse.  
  
She nodded and padded into her room and Hiei walked into his own. 'Goodnight Hiei' she said waiting for him to respond. Hiei hesitantly said, 'Goodnight' before closing the bedroom door. Throwing his stuff near the empty bed he yanked down the covers. Pulling off his jacket and shirt he got into the covers not really caring that he was still in his black pants.  
  
He looked around the room. It was dark but not so dark he couldn't see thanks to the street lamp outside the window. A messy dresser, shelves covered with unused books and old action figures. A closet wide open on one side of the room revealed clothes lying in heaps on the floor, some lucky enough to still be hanging. Plates and bowls everywhere made only one word come to Hiei's mind: Disgusting.  
  
Laying there he stared out the window and sighed. He turned over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. Closing his eyes he tried to get some sleep.  
  
**END CHAPTER  
**  
OKAY I know that was fairly short and all but this is really just the introduction to my story. I'm hoping I don't screw this up too bad (even if I know I'm going to). And I'd like to apologize before I go any further for any fashion no-no I make. For some reason I keep imagining Hiei looking like Subaru from Tokyo Babylon minus the hats. I'd also like to ask forgiveness for any OOC. Well I hoped you like reading it as much as I did writing it. Love ya,  
  
Screamarie. 


	3. Chapter 2, Just a Glance

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.  
  
**Living Off Blood...  
**  
** Chapter Two:  
Just a Glance**  
  
Hiei growled slightly as another student bumped into him. He was currently being escorted to his first class by Yusuke. After having found Yukina's, Yusuke had turned to him, taken the schedule card from his hand, and started walking. The last few days with his aunt and cousin had been hell. Lately he had been walking around this new town because he hated being at the house.  
  
Atsuko was either at work, drunk, passed out, or out with her new boyfriend. Yusuke was always being loud and obnoxious. The only good thing about having to share Yusuke's room was that if you climbed the drain pipe on the outside of the house you could get to the roof. It was nice for when Hiei wanted a place to smoke in peace.  
  
Hiei had already started to look for a job. If you smoke you got to have a job. That or really believe in five-finger discounts. Since Hiei didn't really feel like having to steal anything he always had a job. Not that he had a problem with stealing, just only if he had to. Besides a job meant he had more reason to leave the house.  
  
"Here you go but a word of advice, if things get to annoying, the roof is a nice place to hang out at. Course you can just leave if you like." Yusuke said with a smirk and walked off. Hiei rolled his eyes. 'Slacker' played through his mind as he walked into the classroom. The teacher standing there was a tall, old man with graying hair and large glasses.  
  
"You must be the new student." He said smiling. "Can I see your schedule card?" Hiei handed it to him. Reading over it he pointed to a desk. "You can sit there." Hiei not being one for words took his card and sat down. Placing his bag on the floor he stared at his desk. Gazing intently at the desk, he heard the tardy bell ring and people scrambled to their seats.  
  
"Okay everybody I'd like to introduce our new student umm..." He looked down at his roll call sheet. "Hi...He..."  
  
"Hiei." He pronounced for the teacher. This wasn't the first time he had had trouble with his name. Nor was it to be the last seeing as the teachers were no smarter than the students they could just retain information about a certain subject. Hiei pulled out some paper as the class began and they stared the day with notes.  
  
** Lunch Break**  
  
Hiei had been silently gliding through all of his subjects. Not a single teacher had been able to say his name. Course it didn't bother him too much. He was used to it. He walked into the cafeteria. Atsuko had given him some lunch money this morning. Even after hearing Hiei tell her that he didn't each lunch Atsuko had insisted he take it, in case.  
  
He had planned to sit and be quiet at the end of a table and be ignored. His plan was ripped to shreds as Yusuke noticed him. Yusuke jumped up as Hiei rolled his eyes and groaned.  
  
"Hey come on." Yusuke said and dragged the boy over to a table. Sitting there at the table were three boys, two girls, and his sister Yukina. "Hey this is my other cousin, Hiei. Hiei meet Kuwabara, Koenma, Botan, Jin, and Keiko. "Yusuke said and the group smiled and gave some form of greeting to the other boy. Hiei stared wordlessly at the others. He moved to the side of the table and sat down beside his sister, pulling out a book he started on some homework.  
  
"Don't tell me you're going to spend your whole lunch break doing homework?" Yusuke asked with his loud voice.  
  
"What's so wrong with that? If anything you should take a leaf from his book and actually DO YOURS!" Keiko pointed out to Yusuke. Yukina sat there chuckling as her older cousin got told off.  
  
"She has a point Yusuke. Do you turn in any of your homework?" Botan asked.  
  
"I do vocabulary...sometimes." Yusuke said.  
  
"I don't see how you ever got to the 10th grade." Kuwabara said.  
  
"What was that?" Yusuke yelled.  
  
"You heard me!" Kuwabara yelled back.  
  
"You wanna fight?!" Yusuke said grabbing Kuwabara's shirt.  
  
Hiei stood up and put his book back into his bag. Slinging his bag onto his back he started to walk from the cafeteria. The group watched quietly.  
  
"Hey where you going?" Yusuke asked.  
  
"I'm going to find somewhere quiet where I can work since you two idiots can't shut up." He said and walked out of the large room and into the autumn breeze of outside. He sighed wondering how he was supposed to get to the roof like Yusuke had said.  
  
"If you're looking for some place quiet I can get you there." Said a strong Irish accent behind him. He turned to find the boy named Jin standing there with a toothy grin. Hiei stared at him. His distrust in other was a deep feeling and therefore didn't find this man anymore to his liking than any other person. "Come on." Jin said and turned.  
  
Hiei wasn't sure if he should follow. He knew what classmates like to pull to people they think are weaker and because of Hiei's size many thought him to be helpless in the face of a fight. Woe be those who thought it. Hiei may have been small but what he lacked in height he well made up for in strength and speed. Deciding that if need be he could easily take Jin and followed after the red head.  
  
Jin led him into the main part of the building and towards the back of the auditorium. "Right now the drama department isn't holding any production so you can use this way to get to the roof." He said point to a door that led up to the catwalk and a door. "But I wouldn't come here when they are doing a production because only drama students are allowed in here. Well I'll leave you be." He smiled once again and left.  
  
Hiei watched him go and then shrugged and crawled up the ladder. Through the door and up another ladder and he was out onto the roof of the building. Hiei looked over it all. It was quiet and calm around the school, the student parking lot almost empty. The seniors apparently gone out to eat lunch and Hiei was left to sit and stare at the dying grass below.  
  
Hiei wasn't stupid enough to stand there staring down. If anyone just happened to look up they'd see him and he may just get in trouble. So instead of standing there gawking like an idiot he sat down, hidden by the brick railing all along the roof. Pulling out a book and a piece of paper he began reading, writing down the answers on the worksheet.  
  
Hiei sat there for a good while before he looked at his watch. Deciding he had better get back to the cafeteria and hopefully find Yusuke to lead him to his next class, he put his book back in his bag. He had already finished the homework he had been given. Hopefully he wouldn't get more from the last classes of the day. Pulling his backpack back on, he stood.  
  
Noticing something out of the corner of his eye he looked down. A blue car had just pulled up into the student parking lot and a black covered leg was stepping out. Standing up the leg turned into a torso covered in a thin white turtleneck with a green jacket that reached down to two knees. The torso turned into a person. A tall young man with red hair that reached mid-back and soft, beautiful green eyes stood there.  
  
Closing the door to his car he started for the school. Hiei didn't know why but for some reason this person had caught his interest. He stared down at him as he smiled his way back towards the building and then...looked up. Hiei and he made eye contact for maybe a second before Hiei regained thought and turned. 'Well that was dumb! By the way he dresses I'm sure he's a goody two-shoes and is going to tell a teacher right away that there's a boy on the roof' Hiei thought.  
  
Climbing back down from the roof and back into auditorium he walked from the main building back to the cafeteria where he was thankful to find Yukina and Yusuke waiting.  
  
"Hey." Yusuke said.  
  
"Where have you been Hiei?" Yukina asked.  
  
"No where special. Can you show me to my next class, Yusuke?" Hiei said quickly and shortly, waiting to be taken to his next boring lesson.  
  
**Room 204, Mr. Leeman's Art Class  
**  
Yusuke departed and he walked into the room. The class was half full with gossiping teenagers and a tall man in a paint stained, blue smock. He was fairly young with brown eyes and hair and lightly tanned skin. Maybe in his mid-30's or so. Looking up from his paper covered podium, he smiled at Hiei.  
  
"Hi, you must be the new kid. Can I see you're schedule card?" He asked. Hiei handed it to him. The man stared at the card for a good moment, his brows knitting together. Hiei opened his mouth to say his name for the teacher but instead, "Hiei, it's nice to meet you. I'm Orlando Leeman." He said.  
  
Hiei stared at the man somewhat confused. He actually knew how to pronounce his name? How'd he do that? No one ever could. Mentally shrugging he gave it no more thought. Maybe this Leeman was just smarter than the rest of the teachers.  
  
"Well why don't you go take a seat right there?" Leeman said pointing to a desk. Hiei nodded, taking his schedule card back and sat down. The room was somewhat large filled with boxes and crates and the like. There were eight long desk with two seats placed oddly in the room. All gave a good view of the front of the class but they weren't just lined up like other classes. The walls of this room were covered in drawings, paintings, photos, posters, making it hard to see the white wall underneath.  
  
The bell was just about to ring and so more students came into the room, gossiping and talking. It was annoying Hiei how much they talked. It was such a depressing thought to think of these people as his peers. Sighing and stared at the desk he heard the bell ring and then silence.  
  
"ALRIGHT EVERYBODY," Mr. Leeman said loudly. "Today since we've got a new student and I've got some papers to grade I've decided we'll make it a Doodle Day. So as long as you keep it to a dull roar and keep drawing you can do as you please." He said smiling. The kids started to whistle and whoop. 'It other words 'Doodle Day' means you don't have to do jack shit.' That was fine by Hiei. No homework.  
  
"Alright guys settle down..." Hiei heard the door open and then click close. Looking up he saw...the red-head. Standing there in his green coat he smiled sheepishly. "Kurama you're pretty late."  
  
"I know sir and I'm sorry. I stopped to help this girl get to her class. She said her cousin gave her directions but she must have forgotten them." He said. 'Yukina' passed through Hiei's mind. Mr. Leeman chuckled.  
  
"Alright, well we've gotten you a desk partner. Have a seat." He said. Kurama smiled again and then walked over to the desk where he was sitting. Sitting down Kurama smiled at the boy but found he was staring at the desk."Well Kurama I was telling everybody that we're having a Doodle Day so everybody pull out some paper and start doodling."  
  
Kurama and Hiei both reached to their binders and got some paper and a pencil from them. A light murmur of talking glided above the students as they talked, giggled, and joked. Hiei stared at the paper before him, deciding to draw his sister from memory he made a line.  
  
"I'm Kurama, what's your name?" He heard. Blinking he looked up.  
  
"Hiei." He said to the smiling face.  
  
"It's nice to meet you Hiei. You're a sophomore, right?" Kurama asked and got a nod out of the boy who returned to his paper. "I'm a junior. That was you I saw on the roof earlier, wasn't it?"  
  
"Yeah." Hiei said.  
  
"Well you don't have to worry a bout me telling. I'll keep my lip sealed. So was that your sister I met in the hall?" Kurama asked.  
  
"Yes, Yukina." He said as he worked on the curve of her face.  
  
"She seems really nice."  
  
**Atusko Urameshi's House**  
  
"Hey everybody, how was school?" Atsuko asked.  
  
"Fine, mom." Yusuke said.  
  
"That's good! So you make any new friends Hiei?" Atsuko said but the only reply she got was a slamming door. Atsuko sighed. She knew that Hiei had problems. Course if you were constantly told you did something wrong, you'd probably be a little screwed up too. Course being the kind of mother she was, she didn't really know how to help him. 'Poor kid' she thought.  
  
Hiei stared at the sky from the roof of the house. The cigarette between his lips brought a comforting feeling...as well as lung cancer. He sighed. Today hadn't been too bad but the thought that he had to return the next day was not very appealing. At least it was Friday tomorrow then he could have two days of sweet freedom...sort of.  
  
He figured tomorrow he'd go look for a job after he'd done his homework. He had decided long ago he got enough yelling from his mother so that's why he always got good grades and did his homework. It kind of annoyed him though that no matter what he did, he never got any praise. Not from his teachers, not from his mother, not from anyone in his family. All his hard work was just going to waste. All because he didn't want to get yelled at.  
  
This thought bummed him out and he sighed again. Deciding not to dwell on it he let his mind wander onto other things. His thoughts sauntered over to memory of the red head he had saw earlier. After Kurama had commented on his sister he had continued a steady stream of conversation where Hiei only said something if he couldn't answer with a nod or a shake of his head.  
  
He had seemed persistent to get the boy to talk but as persistent as he was he never got more than a few words. Hiei thought he would have become annoyed with the upperclassman after awhile but...he never did. Hiei hated to admit it but there was something about the other's voice that he liked. The soothingly calm tone ran over him like water. Most of the time Hiei hated to answer people's questions but, for a reason he didn't understand, he didn't mind answering Kurama's questions. Usually when people kept on and on he ended up getting pissed and yelling at them to shut up.  
  
Hiei shrugged mentally. Yusuke popped his head over the edge of the roof. "Mom says dinner's ready." Hiei nodded again and crawled over to where Yusuke's head was. Following Yusuke down the drain pipe he got back into the house and went with Yusuke to the kitchen.  
  
** END CHAPTER**

Okay another end to another chapter. Again any OOC I'd like to apologize for and yes I'm including Jin in this. I'm thinking about adding Karasu as well but I can't be sure. I know there something I wanted to point out or apologize for but I can't really remember what it is but if I ever think of it I'll put it up lol. Well I hope you liked reading it as much as I did writing it. Love ya,

Screamarie.


End file.
